For centuries, board games have been an extremely popular form of entertainment for people of all ages. These types of games have been designed both for a single player and for competition between two or more players. Many games use a manipulatable assembly during game play. Some of these assemblies have become famous and add to the enjoyment of playing the game. For example, the Pop-O-Matic™ die roller in the Hasbro™ game Trouble™ has acquired its own widespread identity enjoyed by many because of its uniqueness, because of its usefulness for preventing a lost die and cheating, and because of its “POP” sound when pressed and released. In other games, a spin wheel is used. In the Hasbro™ Game of Life™, players travel around the board by spinning a small wheel in the center of the board with spaces numbered 1 through 10 that is embedded into the landscape of the game board. Additionally, such assemblies are used in board games created from television game shows. For example, the famous spin wheel used in the television game show Wheel of Fortune, has been adapted for use in a board game.
During the past few decades, videogames and all types of digital gaming have evolved and become a staple for game players, and, with the advent of personal computing devices, such as home computers, laptop computers, tablet computers, smart phones, home and portable gaming systems, and the like, videogame play and all types of digital gaming are now ubiquitous. As part of the evolution of video and digital gaming, many board games have been adapted for videogame and other digital game play, including those board games that were adapted from television shows. Nevertheless, despite the pervasiveness of videogames and digital gaming, board games have remained popular. As a result of the coexisting popularity of digital gaming and board games, games and toys involving both computer-related and board game play interaction are developing and, accordingly, becoming popular.
Additionally, the booming popularity of tablet computers has produced a corresponding boom in the popularity of board games adapted for devices with touch screens. Likewise, coming full circle, the popularity of board games adapted for devices with touch screens has caused a corresponding increase in the popularity of board games.
The prior art patents and patent applications involving the interaction of physical game pieces and electronic games are varied. For example, mechanical devices used to provide input to a touch screen are known. United States Patent Application No. US 2006/0256090 to Huppi for “Mechanical overlay”, published Nov. 16, 2006, discloses mechanical overlays for placement over touch sensing devices that include one or more mechanical actuators that provide touch inputs to the touch sensing device. U.S. Pat. No. 8,199,114 to Jaeger for “Touch sensor control devices”, issued Jun. 12, 2012, discloses mechanical devices to enhance the input process for touch screen devices, such as fader tracks with or without fader caps, rotary and fixed knobs, and joysticks that may be removably adhered to a touch screen and used to emulate their respective functions using software interpretation of the touch detections provoked by the devices to carry out the emulations. For fixed knobs, the software application accepts initial inputs and determines the location on the touch screen, and also interprets the geometry of the input strokes as commands for selected controller emulations, such as joystick, fader, knob, or mouse. For emulating a fader controller, the invention provides a touch sensor controller having a longitudinal web that incorporates touch sensor electrodes and conductors.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,368,662 to Argiro for “Actionable-object controller and data-entry attachment for touchscreen-based electronics”, issued Feb. 5, 2013, discloses a touchscreen-controller and data-entry ensemble attached conterminously or proximately to a touchscreen device with one or more input ends and one or more output ends with each input end of a unitary conductive element connected to a respective output end and the plurality of output ends, residing in an attachment base, are in a position of contact with or in close proximity to the soft buttons, keys or controller(s) of a touchscreen so that the output ends thus activate the touchscreen when the input ends are manipulated. A base maintains the input and/or output ends in fixed position during use.
United States Patent Application No. US 2013/0181927 to Madonna et al. for “Remote control unit for a programmable multimedia controller”, published Jul. 18, 2013, discloses a menuing system with a plurality of selectable options overlaid upon a portion of a video being shown on a display device coupled to a programmable multimedia controller that may be adapted for a touch screen device.
Other prior art patents and applications disclose identifying an object placed on a touch screen and using the object as an input device based on the identification. United States Patent Application Nos. US 2011/0227871 to Cannon for “Electronic device and the input and output of data”, published Sep. 22, 2011, US 2012/0050198 to Cannon for “Electronic device and the input and output of data”, published Mar. 1, 2012, and US 2012/0194457 to Cannon for “Identifiable object and a system for identifying an object by an electronic device”, published Aug. 2, 2012, and U.S. Pat. No. 8,358,286 to Cannon for “Electronic device and the input and output of data”, issued Jan. 22, 2013, relates to a system for identifying an object with an electronic device that has a touch screen. The object includes a conductive portion having a first contact member, a second contact member, and a third contact member all engageable with the touch screen, the conductive portion is connected to all three contact members. The third contact member is movably mounted on the object and movable relative to the other two contact members. The first contact member and the second contact member are spaced by a first distance, and the third contact member is spaced from a line connecting the first and second contact members by a second distance so that a user can grasp the object and manipulate it relative to the touch screen so that the object is moved by the user into contact with the touch screen. The electronic device identifies the object. The first distance is used by the electronic device to determine a category of the object and the second distance is used by the electronic device to determine the identity of the object within the category. The electronic device generates a visual output on the touch screen based on the location and the movement of the contact points.
United States Patent Application No. US 2013/0079139 to Gray for “Overlays for touch sensitive screens to simulate buttons or other visually or tactually discernible areas”, published Mar. 28, 2013, relates to overlays for use with touch sensitive display that are configured to simulate visually and/or touch discernible areas with the look and feel of actual buttons or activators. The overlay may be placed over the surface of the display to augment its look and/or feel, to enhance its user operability as a touch sensitive display device. The overlay includes one, a plurality, or a pattern of visually and/or touch discernible area(s), and is overlaid on the display device such that the discernible areas are registered with active, touch sensitive regions of the display device so that a user can readily discern the active regions of the display device based on the visually or touch discernible areas overlaid thereon. When an area is touched, an active region corresponding to the area is activated, and an activation signal is generated to trigger execution of a corresponding routine.
Further prior art patents and applications disclose identifying an object placed on a touch screen and using the object to interact further with a virtual environment. United States Patent Application No. US 2007/0062852 to Zachut et al. for “Apparatus for object information and methods of using same”, published Mar. 22, 2007, relates to a system for determining information regarding at least one object having a sensor sensitive to capacitive coupling and at least one object adapted to create a capacitive coupling with the sensor when at least one signal is input to the sensor. A detector is adapted to measure at least one output signal of the sensor and the output signal associated with the object is an object information code.
United States Patent Application No. US 2009/0115133 to Kelly et al. for “Game related systems, methods, and articles that combine virtual and physical elements”, published May 7, 2009, relates to physical objects employed with a virtual game layout to enhance wager and non-wagered based gaming. Display subsystems may provide a changeable or selectable virtual game layout with demarcations appropriate to a selected game, and a sensor subsystem may detect physical aspects of game related pieces (e.g., playing cards, chips, markers, dice, spinners, tokens, tiles) as well as media (e.g., identity media, financial media). All gaming functions, as well as functions such as ordering food, beverages and services, may occur through interaction with a playing surface.
United States Patent Application No. US 2009/0124379 to Wells for “Transparent card display”, published May 14, 2009, relates to interactive gaming tables, such as for wager-based games, that include one or more video displays and that detect and distinguish between various types of physical objects placed on the interactive gaming table. The gaming tables associate a function with a physical object and generate a video display window that is viewable through a transparent portion of the physical object and that includes content associated with the function. A mostly transparent, credit-card sized object designed to be carried by a game player is one example of one type of physical object that can be utilized with the interactive gaming table.
United States Patent Application No. US 2009/0131134 to Baerlocher et al. for “Gaming system having user interface with uploading and downloading capability”, published May 21, 2009, relates to a game table having a multiplayer interactive display/input device that enables multiple players to simultaneously play primary or base wagering games and/or secondary or bonus games using the display/input device. The gaming system also enables use of a card that is encoded or encrypted with a tag, such as a radio frequency tag, that the cameras or readers of the game table can detect, and the card interacts with the display/input device of the game table.
European Patent Application No. EP 2505239 to Cartamundi for “A platform for playing variable multi-player games, and a corresponding multi-player game”, published Mar. 10, 2012, relates to a platform suitable for playing variable multi-player games using a substrate, at least one interface for receiving dedicated game applications, a touch display with dimensions adapted to enable a plurality of players to simultaneously view and interact with a displayed game board through finger touch, and a processor for monitoring, controlling and guiding progress of a game. The substrate and touch display are composed of flexible materials, and the touch display uses a tactile layer for sensing dedicated game components that are associated with a dedicated game application.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,272,945 to Kelly et al. for “Game related systems, methods, and articles that combine virtual and physical elements”, issued Sep. 25, 2012, relates to a networked gaming system with backline wagering that includes a wagering device operable by a first secondary player not participating in a hybrid wagering game to place a number of backline wagers on play of at least one primary participant who participates in the hybrid wagering game. The system further has a hybrid wagering game system with at least one physical element manually manipulatable by at least one primary participant in the hybrid wagering game as part of a hybrid wagering game and not manually manipulatable by any nonparticipant secondary players as part of a hybrid wagering game. The physical element is at least a first game piece without any associated monetary value with which the hybrid wagering game is played. At least one sensor is operable to read identifying information from the physical element received at a participant position during the hybrid wagering game. A display selectively shows at least one virtual element during the hybrid wagering game. The virtual element is a game piece with which the hybrid wagering game is played, and the play of a participant is assessed based at least in part on values associated with the game pieces. A processor is configured to assess the identifying information read by the sensor and to assess the play of the participant based at least in part on the values associated with the first game pieces.
United States Patent Application No. US 2013/0012313 to Chen for “Table computer game device”, published Jan. 10, 2013, relates to a game piece that includes conductive touch points that are configured to contact a touch screen of a computing device and register a touch event with the computing device. The game pieces may include an input component that can receive signals from the touch screen device and generate an effect based on the signals. Game pieces may include momentary touch points allowing for variable game play. Game pieces may also have different touch point patterns allowing the touch screen computing device to generate effects or responses based on the touch point pattern of the game piece.
In sum, the prior art discloses the interaction of physical game pieces and virtual components of electronic games, including using mechanical devices to provide input to a touch screen device, identifying an object placed on a touch screen and using the object as an input device based on the identification, and identifying an object placed on a touch screen and using the object to interact further with a virtual environment. However, the prior art does not provide for a physical object with manipulatable mechanical features that is identified by an application on a touch screen device and where, following the identification, the application adds virtual elements to create a single, manipulatable object with both physical and virtual components.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to define apparatuses, systems and methods, such as games on touch screen devices, which recognize and incorporate mechanically manipulatable physical objects into a virtual environment of the game where the application controlling the virtual environment adds virtual components to the physical object to create a single object used in game play. The inventions discussed in connection with the described embodiment address these and other deficiencies of the prior art.
The features and advantages of the present inventions will be explained in or apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiment considered together with the accompanying drawings.